"Employees feel overworked and underappreciated, so as leaders, we need to stop overloading them to the point where they can't handle the workload," writes Shriar. "Let them explore their own passions and interests, and work on side projects."

Why? Happy employees feel some autonomy and mastery. Having them work on projects that provide those two things improves motivation and engagement.

2. Encourage workers to engage with customers

"At Wistia, a video hosting company, they make everyone in the company do customer support during their onboarding, and they often rotate people into customer support," writes Shriar. "When I asked Chris, their CEO, why they do this, he mentioned to me that it's so every single person in the company understands how their customers are using their product."

Why? Happy employees see that they are working toward something that affects the lives of other people. It's important to see that kind of concrete evidence that what you do matters.

3. Encourage workers to work cross-functionally

"Both Apple and Google have created common areas in their offices, specifically and strategically located, so that different workers that don't normally interact with each other can have a chance to chat," writes Shriar.

Why? Happy employees collaborate across disciplines and build productive relationships with their fellow employees. Cross-functional work also means a company can break out of those dreaded silos.

4. Encourage networking in their industry

"It's important for employees to grow and learn more about what they do. It helps them build that passion for their industry," writes Shriar. "It's important to go to networking events, and encourage your employees to participate in these things. Websites like Eventbrite or Meetup have lots of great resources, and most of the events on there are free."

Why? Happy employees are constantly learning and keeping up with the best practices of their industries.

You're invited to join us tomorrow, December 1st, at 12pm ET for an exclusive webinar, "Making the Case for Employee Advocacy at Your Firm." Register for the free webinar here.